March 27, 2024
Two mothers express their gratitude to Tzu Chi on Charity Day
By Joy Rojas
A sick child doesn’t suffer alone. His mother is likely to suffer twice as much, perhaps even more. First, seeing her young son or daughter struggle helplessly with an illness is enough to break her heart. Then, there’s the need to look for funds for expensive, life-saving treatments.
For Lenlen Galban and Mariekris Lapay, two mothers who accompanied their children to Tzu Chi’s Quarterly Charity Day on March 24 at the Jing Si Auditorium of Buddhist Tzu Chi Campus in Sta. Mesa, Manila, any suffering is eased with the generosity, care, and swift response of the men and women in blue and white.
It was 2022 when Lenlen, a housewife married to a construction worker, noticed that her normally mischievous, friendly, and affectionate son Prince was slowly losing his energy and appetite. The initial finding was scoliosis, but another doctor noted symptoms of Pott disease or tuberculosis of the spine. Caused by Myobacterium bacteria spreading to the vertebrae, Pott disease is marked by fever, back pain, and large abscesses, of which Prince had on his back, chest, and leg.
“He could not walk. He could not move. He couldn’t sit for a long time. He needed assistance just to turn on his side,” says Lenlen. To make it to his doctor’s appointments at the Philippine General Hospital in Manila, she carried then 10-year-old Prince through three commutes from their home in Las Piñas.
“It was very difficult,” she says. “My husband’s income was just enough for food. We couldn’t afford assistive devices or medicine.” In desperation, she sent messages to anyone she could think of, explaining Prince’s dire condition and asking for any sort of help they could provide.
“Suddenly we get a reply from Tzu Chi,” she says. Lenlen first encountered the foundation in 2010 while she was living with a sibling in a community in Rizal Province that was receiving aid from a recent flood.
For Prince, Tzu Chi provided him with a wheelchair to get around and a brace to prevent his spine from breaking or deforming. When his parents didn’t know where to get a money for an MRI of the spine, a crucial imaging test to determine the appropriate treatment for Pott disease, Tzu Chi covered the cost for that, too.
“Tzu Chi was the only one that offered immediate help,” says Lenlen.
At his first Tzu Chi Charity Day, Prince was like his old self again, playing with his sister Princess and hugging his mother for a picture. “He can walk far. He can play and eat. He does not need to be assisted anymore. Thank you, Tzu Chi Foundation and Master Cheng Yen, for all the help you have given us, especially for my son,” says Lenlen.
Now 6, Wish Margarette Lapay experienced her health woes as soon as she was born. Diagnosed with ventricular septal defect or a hole in the heart, she was just a year and a half when she underwent open-heart surgery at the Philippine Heart Center to correct the congenital heart condition. Wish’s parents, who sell snacks at a school across their home in Lower Antipolo, took out loans to pay for her surgery.
Although the procedure boasts a high success rate, hers came with complications. “A week after surgery, there was a leak in her heart and pus in her wound,” says Mariekris. At the ICU where she was treated for sepsis, Wish was given a 50-50 chance of survival. Mariekris sobs at the memory of her baby girl being revived by doctors.
While her wound has since healed, the leak in her heart is still there. Maintenance medicines allow her to live relatively symptom-free. Still, doctors recommend she undergo another open-heart surgery to correct her condition.
“Actually, she doesn’t want to go back,” says Mariekris. “We pleaded with the doctor if we could do [the less invasive] cardiac catherization. But she’s a strong girl. We really prayed to have her and we know she can overcome this.”
For Wish’s treatment, she approached the Tzu Chi Foundation, a name she heard and remembered from fellow mothers. “It's so different. Tzu Chi is the first charity organization that I approached and you didn't disappoint,” says Mariekris, who receives a regular supply of heart medicines and a milk supplement.
With surgery still in the offing (doctors are keen on performing it when Wish turns 7), this mother can breathe a sigh of relief for now.
“We don't make it a problem anymore. Every month, we receive a text message from Tzu Chi saying that Wish's medicine is ready,” says Mariekris.
“Thank you for not taking us for granted. We hope you can help more people like us. As Master Cheng Yen said, you are ready to help anyone with a kind heart and real needs. Your door is always open to help, especially those with health conditions.”
The next Quarterly Charity Day is on June 23, 2024.
Lenlen Galban (left) with her 11-year-old son Prince, who is being treated for Pott disease or tuberculosis of the spine. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Through the Tzu Chi Foundation, Lenlen Galban (left) was able to get a wheelchair and brace for her son Prince, who was diagnosed with Pott disease. Tzu Chi also covered the cost of his MRI, a crucial imaging test that helped determine the type of treatment for his condition. “Tzu Chi was the only one that offered immediate help,” says Lenlen. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Homemaker Lenlen Galban (center) makes the heart sign together with her daughter, 13-year-old Princess (left) and 11-year-old Tzu Chi beneficiary Prince, after they claim their 20kg rice, personal hygiene kit, and bag of groceries. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Besides a wheelchair, Tzu Chi gave 11-year-old Prince Galban a brace to keep his spine from deforming and breaking due to Pott disease or tuberculosis of the spine. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
During a home visit, Tzu Chi volunteers document Prince Galban’s struggles with Pott disease or tuberculosis of the spine. Symptoms include difficulty moving and large abscesses on his chest, back, and leg.
During a home visit, Tzu Chi volunteers document Prince Galban’s struggles with Pott disease or tuberculosis of the spine. Symptoms include difficulty moving and large abscesses on his chest, back, and leg.
During a home visit, Tzu Chi volunteers document Prince Galban’s struggles with Pott disease or tuberculosis of the spine. Symptoms include difficulty moving and large abscesses on his chest, back, and leg.
Mariekris Lapay (right) named her daughter Wish “because we really prayed to have her.” Now 6, Wish was practically a newborn when she was diagnosed with ventricular septal defect or a hole in the heart. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
The scar that runs down Wish Lapay’s chest is a reminder of the open-heart surgery she had at just one and a half years old. Complications from that surgery require her to undergo another open-heart procedure. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Tzu Chi volunteers conduct a home visit at Mariekris and Wish Lapay’s Lower Antipolo residence. “Tzu Chi is the first charity organization that I approached and you didn't disappoint,” says Mariekris (in maroon).
Tzu Chi volunteers conduct a home visit at Mariekris and Wish Lapay’s Lower Antipolo residence. “Tzu Chi is the first charity organization that I approached and you didn't disappoint,” says Mariekris (in maroon).
Wish Lapay at the Philippine Heart Center
Wish Lapay at the Philippine Heart Center
Fire prevention was the topic of March 24’s Quarterly Charity Day. Tzu Chi Charity Department volunteer Tina Pasion (right) asks beneficiaries to share their experiences and tips on fire safety. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Fire prevention was the topic of March 24’s Quarterly Charity Day. Tzu Chi Charity Department volunteer Tina Pasion (right) asks beneficiaries to share their experiences and tips on fire safety. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Fire prevention was the topic of March 24’s Quarterly Charity Day. Tzu Chi Charity Department volunteer Tina Pasion (right) asks beneficiaries to share their experiences and tips on fire safety. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Tzu Chi volunteers Julie Collado (left) and Levy Yao serve as hosts of the March 24 Quarterly Charity Day. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Tzu Chi volunteer Julie Collado (right) introduces beneficiaries to Gwyneth Yu. The daughter of a volunteer of Tzu Chi’s upcycling program, Gwyneth hasn’t let her autism stop her from joining her mother Esther in weaving excess sports sock material into durable rugs and seat covers. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Tzu Chi volunteers prepare vegetarian lunch packs for beneficiaries to receive after claiming their 20kg rice, bag of groceries, and personal hygiene kit. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Tzu Chi volunteers prepare vegetarian lunch packs for beneficiaries to receive after claiming their 20kg rice, bag of groceries, and personal hygiene kit. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Tzu Chi volunteers prepare vegetarian lunch packs for beneficiaries to receive after claiming their 20kg rice, bag of groceries, and personal hygiene kit. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】
Tzu Chi volunteers prepare vegetarian lunch packs for beneficiaries to receive after claiming their 20kg rice, bag of groceries, and personal hygiene kit. 【Photo by Marella Saldonido】